David Shulman, Harvard Medical School III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
IMAGING OF HAMSTRING AVULSION INJURIES:
DIAGNOSTIC, PROGNOSTIC AND TREATMENT
IMPLICATIONS
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
AGENDA
• Patient presentation
• Regional anatomy
• Presentation and epidemiology
• Diagnostic imaging
• Implications for treatment
• Conclusion of patient presentation
• Imaging of chronic hamstring injuries
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
OUR PATIENT: HISTORY
• 76-year-old man presented to the emergency room with
sharp pain in the right posterior thigh
• Sudden onset while running
• 2/10 at rest
• 10/10 with any active movement
• No prior history of lower extremity injury
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
OUR PATIENT: EXAM
• Extremities:
• Pelvis stable and non-tender
• No swelling, overlying ecchymosis, or palpable
defect in muscles/tendons of posterior thigh
• Tenderness to palpation over right superior posterior
thigh
• Active contraction of right hamstring limited by pain
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
OUR PATIENT: PLAIN FILM
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
PACS-BIDMC
OUR PATIENT: FURTHER HISTORY
• Given the patient’s history, there was high suspicion for
a muscle tear
• An MRI was ordered for two days after the injury
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
OUR PATIENT: MRI - ISCHIAL TUBEROSITY
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
PACS-BIDMC MRI Axial - T1 C- MRI Axial - T2 C-
OUR PATIENT: MRI - BASE OF ISCHIAL TUBEROSITY
PACS-BIDMC
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Findings:
• Normal tendon attachment
• Absent tendon attachment
• Edema and hemorrhage
MRI Axial - T1 C- MRI Axial - T2 C-
OUR PATIENT: MRI - 1 CM BELOW ISHCIAL TUBEROSITY
PACS-BIDMC
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
MRI Axial - T1 C- MRI Axial - T2 C-
OUR PATIENT: MRI - 2 CM BELOW ISCHIAL TUBEROSITY
PACS-BIDMC
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
MRI Axial - T1 C- MRI Axial - T2 C-
OUR PATIENT: MRI - 4 CM BELOW THE ISCHIAL TUBEROSITY
PACS-BIDMC
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Avulsed tendon head
MRI Axial - T1 C- MRI Axial - T2 C-
OUR PATIENT: MRI CORONAL
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
MRI Coronal - T1 C- MRI Coronal – STIR C-
PACS-BIDMC
Findings:
• Normal tendon attachment
• Avulsed tendon
OUR PATIENT: MRI - EXPANDED
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
PACS-BIDMC
Ischial tuberosity
Tendon
MRI Coronal - T1 C- MRI Coronal – STIR C-
DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS
Posterior thigh pain
• Hamstring strain
• Ischial tuberosity disease
• Hamstring enthesopathy
• Hamstring syndrome
• Referred pain
• Hamstring contusion
• Myositis ossificans
• Bursitis
• Ligament strain
• Posterior compartment syndrome
• Sciatic nerve pain
• Bone tumor
• Sacroiliitis
• Claudication
Radiologic differential for hamstring
muscle complex injury
• Hamstring strain
• Hamstring avulsion/tear w/ or w/o
ischial tuberosity involvement
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
REGIONAL ANATOMY
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
• Flex the knee and extend the hip
• The hamstring muscles cross two
joints, predisposing to strains and
tears
• Decelerates the leg during running
and walking
Koulouris G, Connell D. Hamstring muscle complex: an imaging review.
Radiographics. 2005 May-Jun;25(3):571-86. Review. Erratum in: Radiographics.
2005 Sep-Oct;25(5):1436.
REGIONAL ANATOMY – TENDON ATTACHMENTS
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Semimembranous
Tendon
Conjoint
Tendon
Muscle body
Koulouris G, Connell D. Hamstring muscle complex: an imaging
review. Radiographics. 2005 May-Jun;25(3):571-86. Review.
Erratum in: Radiographics. 2005 Sep-Oct;25(5):1436.
PACS-BIDMC
PRESENTATION AND EPIDEMIOLOGY
• History
• Sudden onset
• Feeling of a “pop”
• Pain is exacerbated by movement of the leg
• Epidemiology and risk factors
• Adolescents - Avulsion of the ischial tuberosity is more common
• Adults - Involvement of the muscle-tendon junction
• Elderly – Tendon involvement most common
• Poor flexibility and muscle weakness relative to the quadraceps
• Sports related – Waterskiing, sprinting, playing soccer and football
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Koulouris G, Connell D. Hamstring muscle complex: an imaging review. Radiographics. 2005 May-Jun;25(3):571-86. Review. Erratum in: Radiographics. 2005 Sep-Oct;25(5):1436.
IMAGING HAMSTRING AVULSIONS: GOALS
• Diagnosis
• Prognosis
• Determine surgical candidacy
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
IMAGING HAMSTRING AVULSIONS: MODALITIES
• X-ray
• Often first study in practice
• May help identify bony abnormalities and joint abnormalities
• Ultrasound
• Most sensitive early for moderate to severe injuries
• Slightly more sensitive than MRI in the first two weeks, but declines as fluid resolves 1
• US may be most sensitive in adolescents2
• MRI
• Improved characterization of the injury
• More prognostic information
• Useful for following injury resolution
1. Connell DA, Schneider-Kolsky ME, Hoving JL, Malara F, Buchbinder R, Koulouris G, Burke F, Bass C. Longitudinal study comparing sonographic and MRI assessments of acute and healing hamstring injuries.
AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2004
2. Lazović D, Wegner U, Peters G, Gossé F. Ultrasound for diagnosis of apophyseal injuries. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 1996;3(4):234-7
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
RADIOLOGIC FINDINGS ON X-RAY
Gidwani S, Bircher MD. Avulsion injuries of the hamstring origin - a series of 12 patients and management algorithm. Ann R Coll Surg Engl. 2007 May;89(4):394-9.
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Ischial tuberosity avulsion
RADIOLOGIC FINDINGS ON US
• Heterogenetity of the HMC tendons
• Surrounding edema
• Separation of conjoint and semimembranous tendons from the ischial tuberosity
• Can look for movement of the muscle tendon complex
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
RADIOLOGIC FINDINGS ON US: EXAMPLES
A
B
Ultrasound imaging showing a partial tear of the
HMC (arrow) near the insertion point on the ischial
tuberosity (*). Fluid can be seen tracking under
the tendon complex (curved arrow).
Ultrasound imaging showing a normal HMC
(arrow) near the insertion point on the ischial
tuberosity (*). Superior to the insertion the HCM is
difficult to separate from the sacrotuberous
ligament (curved arrow).
Koulouris G, Connell D. Hamstring muscle complex: an imaging review.
Radiographics. 2005 May-Jun;25(3):571-86. Review. Erratum in:
Radiographics. 2005 Sep-Oct;25(5):1436.
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
RADIOLOGIC FINDINGS ON MRI
• Tendons are low-intensity on MR
• Loss of low-intensity signal between tendons and bone may be visible on T1
• Intervening edema between tendons and bone will be evident on T2
• On T2 imaging fluid may be seen tracking down the posterior compartment around the
hamstrings.
• May be able to assess sciatic nerve integrity
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
RADIOLOGIC FINDINGS ON MRI: PARTIAL TEAR
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Courtesy of Dr. James Wu
• Partial tear
• Tendon is largely intact
• Subtle high-intensity edema
around tendon
TREATMENT
• Most evidence comes from small case studies
• No definitive guidelines for surgical vs. non-surgical management
• Most patient’s do well with non-operative management
• Elite athletes may benefit from surgical management
• Avulsion of the ischial tuberosity in adolescents may warrant surgical correction
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
OUR PATIENT: CONCLUSION
• The orthopedic surgeon decided to treat non-operatively
• The patient is currently undergoing physical therapy
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
COMPLICATIONS OF HAMSTRING AVULSIONS
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
MRI – sagital – T1 MRI – coronal – T2 FS
• Re-injury
• Sciatic nerve irritation
• Myositis Ossificans
• “Hamstring syndrome”
Personal collection
CONCLUSIONS
• Hamstring injuries are a common musculoskeletal problem
• The choice to image should be based on the history and physical examination
• Imaging modality may be patient specific and depend on the availability of technology
• US and MRI are the two most sensitive technologies
• US is operator dependent, most sensitive early and best for moderate to severe injuries
• MRI provides overall assessment of the injury, surgical characterization and the potential
for long-term monitoring
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
• Dr. Gillian Lieberman
• Claire Odom
• Dr. Jim Wu
• My family
• Roshan Sethi, HMS III
David Shulman, 2013
Gillian Lieberman, MD